Thursday, June 17, 2010

Hello there! First, I wanna let everyone know I'm still alive 8). Life's simply been getting in the way of posting lately. Though I miss blogging and all of you, I won't be posting regularly for a tad longer as I prepare for some major life changes (finally leaving work to return to school for 5 years!). Luckily, I'm not coming to you totally empty-handed today.

This rhubarb raspberry streusel pie is one of the several recipes+photos I've had ready to go for a while. But the time and energy to give it proper introduction has been MIA. Yet it'd be a bona fide crime for you all to miss out on this creamy yet crunchy, sweet n' tart treat that's just perfect for the season.

So this is my peace offering, and I sure hope you'll be back to see what else I've got in the works. Very (food) nerdy of me, but you simply can't imagine how excited I am that a student schedule will allow me more daytime hours for baking/cooking and (equally important) photographing the products of my labor. For the fellow working bloggers out there, do you confine your blogging activities to the weekend or settle for artificial light? Personally, the more food photography I take and see, the stronger my preference for natural light. Guess going back to school is a good thing (for more than that reason 8p).

XIAOLU'S NOTES: I found the melted butter in the streusel to be too much, so I added almost double the amount of flour but only used half of the streusel since I didn't want overwhelming sweetness. I suspect Greek yogurt might work as a healthier alternative to sour cream and will try that next time.

Press the pie crust into a 9 inch pie pan. Spread rhubarb and raspberries in an even layer in the bottom of the crust. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla, white sugar, sour cream, 1/3 cup of flour, and ginger powder until smooth. Pour evenly over the rhubarb.

In a small bowl, mix together 1/2 cup of flour, salt, brown sugar, and cinnamon. [If the pie crust starts warming up, put the filled pie in the refrigerator while you prepare the streusel.] Stir in melted butter until the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the pie.

Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. Continue to bake for 40 minutes, or until the edges have puffed, and the topping is golden. The center may still be slightly jiggly. Cool completely before slicing and serving.

Thanks, you guys! I'm going back to take part-time classes (pre-reqs) and then hopefully get a masters in nutrition and certified as a dietician...it'll be a long path there, but I think/hope it'll be worth it!

Chanel11 - Thanks! You must cook a lot then! I gotta admit, I haven't had much energy to cook so I'm not sure how much more I'd churn out even with nighttime photography hehe.

Steph - Thanks, girl! One reason I rushed back to post is that I wanted to make sure I kept it up and didn't use an ever longer absence as an excuse to stop. I've really enjoyed the world I've discovered in food photography and blogging :), and of course meeting people like you.

noobcook - I am excited too, though a bit scared of the change, which I know is natural. I appreciate the compliment :).

Judy - Haha I thought of your situation, but realized that you've posted more than me in the last few months despite not even being at home with a kitchen! What a slacker I am teehee.

Anh - If I recall correctly, the rice dumpling photos were taken with lights at night. I think they were very nice, but yea there's a beautiful variability to sunlight that can't be beat or duplicated IMHO.

Danielle - Gracias! Can't wait to see what you do with your rhubarb. I actually only had the fruit for the first time last year and have taken quite a liking.

I'm so glad you're sort-of back, I so enjoy your blog! This looks so wonderful, I'd love a bite right now! Congrats on going back to school (especially for something so great as nutrition!!) that's going to be an exciting adventure for the next few years!

Happy to see a new post from you!! That streusel looks so yummy. What are you going back to school for? I definitely prefer natural light too but I don't want to arrange my baking/cooking around light otherwise I would never get to eat anything yummy on a weeknight!

Michelle - I can't believe you have trouble finding rhubarb! And here I thought I was the one always missing the exotic ingredients (red currants, passionfruit, etc.). I hope you do find it soon as it's quite tasty.

Grace - Thank ya!

Avanika - I appreciate the congrats :).

Mary - Yay, I do hope you'll give a try and let me know if you like it.

lisa - gracias!

Koko - Hehe "sort-of back" is the perfect term for my status. I love your blog and miss visiting it more, too. As soon as they invite teleportation, I'll deliver you a slice myself :).

eatme_delicious - I'm going back to eventually become a dietitian and get a masters in nutrition. Unfortunately, that path starts with making up a lot of undergrad hard science classes! By the way, I've been dying to ask for your name (first name at least?) cause you were one of my first blogger friends but I still address you by your blog name!